


Best Job After Ninja

by Metal_Chocobo



Category: Women's Hockey RPF
Genre: Chance Meetings, Edmonton Oilers, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2015-10-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 17:21:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4928452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Metal_Chocobo/pseuds/Metal_Chocobo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Yup, being a hockey goalie is the best job in the world,” Shannon concluded. She paused, frowning a little when she realized there was one job better than goalie. “Well, goalie’s the best job after ninja turtle.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Best Job After Ninja

**—Edmonton, Canada, 1993—**

All Shannon wanted to do today was watch the Oilers game, but her stupid baby brother ruined everything. Daddy had friends over to watch the game and they had taken over the basement. Shannon wasn’t allowed down there with them, but she could sit on the top step, so she was still technically in the kitchen, hear the game, and see almost half of the big screen TV. That was as perfect as she could get when Daddy invited friends over to the hockey game. 

However, while she was innocently watching the game, Matthew decided to be a destructive toddler and broke something. Shannon wasn’t even certain what, but whatever it was had Mama upset and bundling them into the car. Shannon protested, of course. She shouldn’t be punished because Mathew broke something. It wasn’t her job to watch him. All she wanted was to finish the game. Her cries and protests went unheeded as Mama strapped them both into their car seats. It wasn’t fair she was stuck in a car seat. Shannon was almost eight, that was big enough to ride in a regular seat, unlike stupid baby Mathew, who still had that awful bar across his lap. Shannon had hated the bar when that was her car seat. It restricted too much movement and kept her from easily kicking her legs.

When they got to the mall Mama carried Mathew, but made Shannon walk, clutching her hand in a death grip. Mama was moving so fast Shannon had to run to keep up, otherwise it felt like her arm was gonna come out of its socket. It wasn’t fair. Shannon begged to be carried too, but Mama had said ever since Mathew was born that she was big enough to walk on her own. Daddy still carried her sometimes, but more often he carried Mathew or was gone at work.

They visited a lot of stores looking for a replacement for the thing Mathew broke. Everyone seemed to be out of it. Whatever it was couldn’t have been that important in Shannon’s opinion. The stores they visited were all full of tiny fragile toys that Shannon wasn’t allowed to touch. After all, if you couldn’t play with a toy what was the point? Mama said Hummels were for decoration, not for playing. When Shannon said that was stupid, Mama told her to shut her mouth, Mathew had broken Grandma’s wedding present to Mama and Daddy and the only reason she had the Hummel within Mathew’s reach was because Grandma was coming over tomorrow for dinner. She needed a pristine figurine and they weren’t leaving the mall until she found the exact one Mathew broke.

Shannon was ready to throw a fit when she heard this. They were going to miss the rest of the game because Mama had to buy some toy she couldn’t even play with. If she needed to show Grandma a toy Shannon would happily lend her one of her ninja turtles. Grandma would be impressed with Leonardo; she’d have to be since he’s the best. As much as she wanted to scream and cry Shannon didn’t. She didn’t want to get spanked when she got home, or even worse, in public. So as soon as they were out of the store she sat down on a bench and refused to move.

At first Mama ordered Shannon to get up and come along. Shannon refused. Then she tried bribing her to no avail, before physically pulling the little girl off the bench. When Shannon started crying as she clung to the bench insisting she was tired and drawing the attention of other shoppers Mama sighed and let go. She and Mathew were going into the store across the hall and Shannon had better stay on that bench without moving off it for any reason. Shannon nodded and watched as her family retreated into yet another figurine store.

She got bored waiting almost immediately, but looking around Shannon realized that if she leaned to the side she could see into an electronics store that had the Oilers’ game playing on a wall of big screen TVs, every one of which was bigger than the TV in their basement. This transfixed her and Shannon happily watched the rest of second period. She didn’t have the clue who they were playing, some team in red, but the Oilers were winning, as all was proper and right in the world.

She sighed in contentment as some air conditioner ad came on the TV. This was the first game in months that had started early enough in the day she could stay up late enough to watch the entire game. Most nights Mama and Daddy only let her watch through the end of first period, maybe second if she had been good and didn’t have school the next day. Daddy took her to see the last afternoon game and Shannon couldn’t wait to go back to the arena and see another one. That had been the most exciting hockey of her life.

As she waited for third period to start Shannon noticed wailing. Some little kid was crying and from the sound of things, was super upset. Assuming it was Mathew doing something stupid again, she looked around. To her surprise it was a little girl with black hair in ribbons standing in the middle of the hallway. Completely forgetting Mama’s orders, Shannon got up and walked over to talk to her.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Shannon asked once she got within hailing distance. She was a tiny little girl, almost as small as Mathew, but she looked older. She wasn’t in pull-ups, or any other sort of diaper, anymore.

The girl paused her crying for a moment, staring at Shannon, and started up again just as loudly. Shannon looked around. While some grown ups were looking their way, no one bothered to pay them much attention. Nobody looked much like the little girl either.

“Are you lost?” Shannon asked. When the girl kept crying instead of responding, she decided to take action. She grabbed the girl by the hand and pulled her back to the bench. “Come on, you can wait with me until my mom comes back. Mama can find your parents.”

The girl stopped crying and just stared at Shannon. She took that as a good sign. At least she wasn’t causing a racket like stupid Mathew always did. However, Shannon quickly found the girl’s constant stare unnerving. Nobody ever stared at her like that unless she was in trouble. So Shannon decided to distract her. Better than her finally losing interest in her and starting to cry again.

“Do you see the hockey game?” Shannon asked, pointing at the wall of big screen TVs in the store. The girl turned to look at the Oilers skating around in their sharp blue and orange uniforms. “That’s the Edmonton Oilers. They’re the best hockey team in the world and someday I’m gonna play for them.”

The girl turned her attention back to Shannon. She opened her mouth, but instead of saying anything she stuck her thumb in her mouth. Shannon wasn’t deterred. She still remembered sucking on her own thumb and it had been a comfort thing for her. It was also way better than the crying.

“When I’m a grown up I’m going to be the Oilers’ starting goalie,” Shannon continued. She tapped the front of her Oilers jersey. The back was blank, but Daddy said that when she was bigger he’d get her a jersey with Bill Ranford’s name and number on it if she still wanted one. “Mr. Ranford will be ready to retire by then and then I’ll backstop Edmonton to the Stanley Cup!”

Shannon looked back at the girl. She still hadn’t said anything, but continued to stare wide eyed at Shannon. She was beginning to wonder if the girl understood anything Shannon was saying. Well, if nothing else Mama and Mathew would be back from the store any minute now and Mama’d fix everything. She was good at that.

“Yup, being a hockey goalie is the best job in the world,” Shannon concluded. She paused, frowning a little when she realized there was one job better than goalie. “Well, goalie’s the best job after ninja turtle.”

“Ninja?” the girl asked, taking her thumb out of her mouth. Shannon grinned, getting excited. She was following Shannon’s conversation just fine!

“Yeah! I’d love to be a teenage mutant ninja turtle when I grow up!” Shannon said excitedly. She pulled her jersey up to reveal her favorite t-shirt underneath. It was her only ninja turtle shirt, but if she was good Mama might get her some more for her birthday. She tapped the face of the turtle in the blue bandana. “Leonardo’s my favorite! He’s the leader. He’s so cool, calm, collected, and the best fighter of the bunch. I want to be just like him. He also uses a katana, a Japanese sword, which is awesome. See?”

“Ninja,” the girl repeated, reaching out and tapping the turtle with the purple bandana. Shannon made a face.

“That’s Donatello, he’s kind of a dweeb and uses a wooden stick. Still, they can all kick major shell. I would love to be a ninja turtle, but I’d have to get hit by some mu-muto, muta… green glowing ooze to turn into one.” Shannon knew the word ‘mutagenic,’ but didn’t know how to pronounce it. The little girl stared at Shannon’s shirt intently. Her own shirt had a picture of Hello Kitty on it. Shannon was proud she recognized the girl’s character; Hello Kitty was pretty new around here. She felt like they were making a real connection. “So yeah, being a ninja turtle would be cool, but I bet I’ll be a better goalie for the Oilers. Daddy says I’m already really good on the ice.”

They both watched the hockey game for a little while. The Oilers were still in the lead and Shannon had a feeling they were gonna win it. Suddenly a pair of adults rushed up to the girls. It was a man and a woman and they were both crying as they picked Shannon’s new friend up. The little girl burst into tears again as the woman held her to her chest. The man already held a child about Mathew’s size, who was dressed all in pink. These had to be her parents.

“What’s going on?” Mama asked, walking up to the bench. There was a heavily wrapped box in one hand as she carried Mathew on her hip. “Shannon, what happened?”

“We lost our daughter, Nana,” the man said in accented, but clearly legible English. “Your daughter found her for us.”

“Oh I see,” Mama said, observing the situation. Shannon was suddenly very worried Mama knew she left the bench. “Well, I’m glad she could help. Shannon, it’s time to say good bye to your new friend.”

“Wait,” Shannon said. Nana was still crying and that wasn’t right. She stood up on the bench and dug in her pocket. It wasn’t that she was having a hard time finding what she was looking for, just that it was too large to easily pull out. At last she had her Edmonton Oilers puck in hand. She held it out to Nana. “Here, it’s for you. It was nice meeting you, Nana. Remember, the Edmonton Oilers are the best hockey team in the world. We can meet up again when I’m playing for them.”

Nana accepted the puck. Her mother smiled and started to turn away, but before she did Nana said, “Hockey.”

Shannon watched until Nana’s family disappeared around a corner. Then she hopped off the bench and followed Mama out of the mall. She was worried she’d get in trouble for leaving the bench, but all Mama said was that she was proud of Shannon. That she had done a very nice thing not only giving away her puck, but also keeping that little girl calm until her parents found her. That night Shannon got an extra scoop of ice cream on her dessert.

**—Edmonton, Canada, 2016—**

“I can’t believe you’ve never seen an Oilers game. I mean, they’re the Oilers,” Shannon laughed as she drove toward Rexall Place. Nana just shrugged and grinned.

“I had meant to see them in New York, but the Riveters were out of town when they played the Rangers and the Islanders,” Nana explained. “I’m making a point to see them now.”

“True,” Shannon agreed. 

She hadn’t really been aware of Nana Fujimoto until the Sochi Olympics last year, but they had gotten close this year. Or at least as close as two goalies playing in different cities and leagues in the US could get. Nana had admired Shannon for a few years now—after seeing her spectacular performance in goal for Canada at the Vancouver Olympics—and made a point to get to know her this year through Twitter and Instagram. Shannon liked everything she had seen about the shy funny woman and had been more than willing to offer her a place to stay when she expressed interest in seeing an Oilers game live.

“What kind of experience is watching a game here like?” Nana asked.

“It’s simply the best. There’s no place on earth that loves hockey half as much as Edmonton. I mean, the official ‘State of Hockey’ doesn’t even come close,” Shannon said, feeling very dismissive of Minnesota’s self acclaimed title. “I mean, sure, we didn’t make the playoffs. Again. However, the stadium will be packed.”

“All to see McDavid play?”

“That’s definitely a positive at this point, but the main draw is Oilers hockey itself. Win or lose we love our hockey team and this is the last NHL fix of the season,” Shannon explained. “I had to pull quite a few strings and cash in a couple favors with Frederic Chabot, Oilers’ goalie coach, to get these tickets.”

“I greatly appreciate it,” Nana said.

“No problem. I needed a hockey fix too after an Ice Bear broke my foot,” Shannon said, ruefully looking down at her cast. That skater cost her the last two weeks of her season with the Cottonmouths and she’d still have to pay for weeks of rehab after the cast came off.

“You will be back in net in no time,” Nana assured her, squeezing her shoulder. Shannon smiled at her.

“Thanks.” They drove past Rexall Place in silence on their way to a nearby parking lot. The game didn’t start for another hour and a half, but the surrounding area was already packed with fans. Nana stared out the window with obvious glee written on her face. Shannon couldn’t help but smile at her reaction. Anyone would love to see the Oilers in Edmonton. “Hey, I’m not bashing your taste because the Oilers are wonderful, but why are you so set on seeing them?”

“It’s silly,” Nana laughed. She pulled a puck out of her pocket and handed it to Shannon. It was an old beaten up Edmonton Oilers puck. Looked like it had seen a lot of wear and tear. She carefully returned the puck to its owner. “That’s my first puck. Have had it since before my family understood hockey.”

“Oh wow, that’s really cool.” Shannon hadn’t realized the Oilers were that popular in Japan.

“We visited Edmonton when I was four,” Nana said, as if reading her mind. “Memories are murky, but when I came home I had the puck. Started using it when I started playing.”

“Then it’s high time you came back for a visit. Hey maybe we can get that thing signed for you. Interested in a McDavid autograph? Or maybe Talbot or Scrivens?”

“Only if it’s Jenny,” Nana replied. This made both women laugh. It was obvious she valued her teammate over her teammate’s husband.

“Gosh, I’m so happy they’re both able to play goal,” Shannon sighed as they left the car. “Being a goalie’s the best job in the world.”

“Second only to ninja turtle,” Nana said. Both women stopped and Shannon turned to her friend, who was frowning.

“You’re a ninja turtles fan?” Shannon asked. “Because they were my jam when I was a kid. Still are.”

“No. I don’t know why I said that,” Nana said, still frowning. She shook her head. “Never mind. Being goalie is best.”

“Hey, I’d be happy as either. The turtles were hockey fans, if Casey Jones was anything to go by,” Shannon laughed. She waved a hand over her face. “He used to wear one of those old 70s hockey masks.”

“Really?” Nana asked, smiling.

“Oh yeah,” Shannon grinned.

They linked hands as Shannon led Nana to the Oilers’ arena, excitedly telling her all about the teenage mutant ninja turtles. They were going to have so much fun at this hockey game. After all, even if the Edmonton Oilers weren’t technically the best NHL team at the moment—they were in the middle of a rebuild—they were Shannon’s team. That made them the best in the world. She hoped she could instill the same love for the Oilers in Nana. From the look on Nana’s face as she talked Shannon imagined she could.

**Author's Note:**

> Shannon's opinions on the turtles are wrong. Donatello is awesome.
> 
> The Edmonton Oilers are twenty-five years into a one hundred year rebuild.


End file.
